Who Is This Syllabus For?

Students who have completed the "Beginner Jazz Syllabus"

Students who want to learn more advanced chord voicings

Students looking to enhance their solo piano performance skills

Learning Path

This syllabus incorporates a wide range range of theory that is important for solo jazz piano performance. After completing this syllabus you will have a broadened understanding of altered jazz harmony, chord substitution, and reharmonisation.

1.

Chord Alterations: b9s, #9s, #11s, and #5s

By altering the upper extensions of our dominant chords, we can create more interesting and colourful chord progressions and arrangements. The altered chord tones are used to add colour, texture, and tension to our voicings to create that authentic jazz sound.

2.

Upper Structure Triads

Upper Structure Triads are triads that are superimposed above a dominant chord to achieve specific altered chord voicings. By visualising the upper and lower structure of our chords, it allow us to memorise the formulas for complex altered dominant sounds.

3.

Tritone Substitution

Tritone Substitution creates very smooth voice leading in a 251 progression where the root of each chord moves down by a half step to resolution rather than moving by 5ths intervals. This form of reharmonisation adds new life and character to common progressions and cadences.

4.

Suspended Chords

‘Sus’ is shorthand for ‘suspended’ where the 4th which is said to be ‘suspended’ in the chord. Sus chords can be used to enhance our 251 progressions to create more movement and interesting voice leading into the altered tones (b9, #9, #11, #5) of the dominant chord.

5.

Slash Chords

All slash chords contain 2 bits of information. The first letter indicates what chord should be played. The second letter indicates what note should be played in your left hand or in the bass. Slash notation is commonly used as shorthand for complex chords and voicings.

6.

Cluster Voicings

Cluster voicings are tightly spaced groups of 3 or more notes that act as a chord. An interesting feature of cluster voicings is that they do not have to contain the ‘essential chord tones’ which are the 3rd and 7th. This can be used to create dissonant and angular sounds.

Courses

The Chord Voicings Syllabus contains 3 courses which should be studied in the following order:

Your Teachers

Hayden Hill

Hayden is a jazz pianist and educator from Manchester, UK. He founded PianoGroove in 2015 with the goal of making the world a more musical place. Hayden shares his love for jazz piano through his online courses and manages the community area of PianoGroove.

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